Evaluation of the Fake Resistance of a Forced-choice Paired-comparison Computer Adaptive Personality Measure

Abstract

This report documents research that supports the use of the Navy Computer Adaptive Personality Scales (NCAPS) as a fake-resistant alternative when compared with other personality measures using a Likert-scale format. NCAPS is a computer adaptive personality measure being developed and validated for use in the selection and classification of Sailors for entry level Navy enlisted jobs. NCAPS uses a cutting-edge technological approach to personality measurement which is designed to mitigate many problems that plague traditional instruments. Specifically, traditional instruments use straight-forward Likert rating scales where respondents specify their level of agreement to a statement. Moreover, such instruments generally contain sets of homogeneous items with a transparent content, which makes them relative easy to fake (good or bad) and subject to social desirability bias (making oneself look). To minimize these problems, NCAPS developed a paired-comparison forced-choice item format, uses a complex item response theory (IRT) adaptive selection and scoring algorithm, and intersperses item content. Results were striking. There were no significant mean differences between honest and faking scores on any of the 10 personality traits measured by the adaptive test. There were however, significant mean differences between honest and faking scores on all 10 traits measured by the Likert-scale NCAPS. Simply stated, participants were not able to intentionally distort their personality scores when taking the adaptive paired-comparison NCAPS. Therefore, the adaptive paired-comparison NCAPS is very likely to provide scores close to the true trait scores for an individual even under high-stakes testing conditions.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 2008
Accession Number
ADA484183

Entities

People

  • Christina M. Underhill
  • Hubert T. Chen
  • Ronald M. Bearden

Organizations

  • Navy Personnel Research, Studies, and Technology

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Algorithms
  • Applied Psychology
  • Data Sets
  • Employment
  • Instructors
  • Management Personnel
  • Military Personnel
  • Military Research
  • Naval Personnel
  • Personnel Management
  • Psychological Tests
  • Psychology
  • Statistics
  • Students
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Test Methods
  • War Colleges

Fields of Study

  • Psychology

Readers

  • Psychometric Testing or Psychological Assessment.
  • Systems Analysis and Design